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No relief in sight for Moria migrant camp on Lesvos

Migration Minister Dimitris Vitsas on Wednesday stopped short of responding to demands from Lesvos Mayor Spyros Galinos for measures to relieve the pressure at the overcrowded migrant camp at Moria, admitting only that the situation is “very tough if not borderline.”

Vitsas was responding to a letter in which Galinos warned that the number of asylum seekers on the eastern Aegean island has surpassed 10,000 while arrivals keep coming. The number of people at Moria, a facility built to host 3,100, on Wednesday hit a new record of 8,455.

“The main issue is that while the EU-Turkey statement has been in force for two-and-a-half years, inflows toward Lesvos remain high,” Vitsas said.

Official figures show 3,950 refugees were transferred to mainland Greece from May 1 to August 31 and 34 were returned to Turkey, while 5,450 migrants landed on Lesvos.